For You to Notice
by The Night Life 13
Summary: AU; Prom night! Marissa's going with Summer, Seth, and Ryan. Alex is working at the Bait Shop. With Jodie making fun of her throughout the night, how's Alex supposed to cope with her feelings for Marissa? MALEX Two-Shot! Complete
1. Love Makes You Soft

**Disclaimer: Don't own The O.C. or House M.D. (made a small reference to it) **

**Olivia Wilde and Mischa Barton are amazing and I wish that Malex lasted longer, but since it didn't we have fanfiction to dream up what we wished would happen. Thank you Fanfiction!**

**This is my second Malex fic, I was inspired by… some personal experience, and the fact that some of the stories that I'm currently reading haven't updated in a really really long time. So I decided to write one haha. This is an AU but Alex works at the Bait Shop still and they're still in Newport. Alex and Marissa are best friends, Alex and Jodie are friends/ co-workers, and Marissa and Summer are best friends. Marissa's known Summer longer. Summer and Seth are dating. Ryan is single, but he and Marissa aren't together, they tried it before but it didn't work out. And off you go…**

**For You to Notice**

"Are you sure you don't wanna go with us?"

"Yeah, it's not like I can still get a ticket now anyway,"

"But… it's PROM!"

"Didn't we already discuss this?"

"…noooo…"

"Oh really? I think you're lying to me"

"Yeah. I am…"

"I know you too well,"

"But, Alex, I can't believe you're not going to your Junior Prom!" a tall, lanky brunette said exasperatedly to her best friend. The blonde she was talking to exhaled loudly and closed her eyes for a second. The two girls were sitting on a bench in a park watching the people pass them by. The shorter girl opened her eyes again before replying.

"Marissa, I already told you that dances aren't really my thing, I have work tonight too," Alex explained again to the brunette, as she brushed her bangs away from her face, the purple streak still visible.

"Fine, but next year you're definitely coming with me and Summer, we're going to make you,"

"I'll just hide from the two of you, it's not like it's hard to do that…"

"You want me to use force on you Kelly?" the taller girl challenged, smirking as she spoke.

"Hmm, you using force on me is… intriguing, but I don't think you can handle me Cooper," Alex paused to emphasize her word choice of 'intriguing' before smugly finishing her sentence.

"Oh, stop with the House allusions" Marissa told her sighing.

"I believe you're pedantic diction makes you sound pretty smart," Alex continued as a smile slowly crept up on her face.

"Smartass,"

"You're one too, we're in the same AP English class… and I always catch you sleeping, or in the process of falling asleep… it's a wonder that you used 'allusion' correctly"

"Shut up, Alex! I do not"

"Oh yeah? One of the upsides of that class is that I sit directly across from you on the other side of the room and it's hilarious to see your head almost hitting the desk everyday." Marissa playfully shoved her best friend away from her, trying to knock her off of the bench. Luckily, Alex caught herself in time and held onto the sides of it.

"Looks like someone's been watching me during class…" the brunette winked as she folded her arms over her chest.

"Yes, I'm a stalker and I stare at you just cause you're incredibly hot," Alex said with a monotone voice, even though it was mostly true in her mind. "Also, you're in my line of vision and I actually HAVE to look at you,"

"Damn, here I thought my best friend was checking me out,"

"Sorry, I only do that when you're not looking," the two girls began laughing together. But in Alex's mind every word she said was true.

"So," the blonde began, "it's you, Summer, Seth and Ryan?"

"Yep,

"Well, it's a good thing I'm not going then, I wouldn't want to intrude and be the fifth wheel of the group,"

"Alex, you know that's not true." Marissa told her.

"Mmmmhmmm,"

"Just because Summer and Seth are dating doesn't mean that Ryan and I are, that ship has sailed... you'd be the first to know about everything anyway,"

"Yeah……" Alex said unconvincingly.

"Alex, stop that, you're my best friend, I tell you everything, you know that," Marissa continued, she looped her arm with Alex's and rested her head on the blonde's shoulder. Alex stiffened at Marissa's touch, but she relaxed and sighed. The shorter girl could feel her heart beat rapidly in her chest; Marissa's scent reached her nose. It was distinctly her smell, and Alex loved that. Sadly, she knew that the moment couldn't last forever and she had to cut it short.

"I gotta get ready for work, and you should too," the blue/green-eyed girl stated after a minute.

"Oh, yeah," Alex stood up and instantly missed the warmth that was around her right arm. Marissa rose to her feet as well and Alex could have sworn she saw a flash of disappointment go across her face.

"You can always text or call me …you know, if you start to miss hearing my voice…." The blonde informed her nonchalantly, a smirk once again gracing her lips.

"You're so full of it sometimes, you know that Kelly?"

"Only sometimes," Alex shot back, a smile now visible fully. Marissa scoffed and her eyes lightened up.

"I'll talk to you later then," The taller girl said as she got her bag.

"Yep, I'll be waiting," Without any hesitation, the brunette wrapped her arms around the blonde, who returned the hug immediately. After a few seconds they let got of each other.

"Bye,

"Bye friend," Alex called out as Marissa walked away.

"Marissa Cooper, you have no idea what you do to me…" the blonde said under her breathe once she was gone. She tucked her hands into her jean pockets and began to walk towards her car.

**-Few Hours Later-**

Alex finished passing out a couple of drinks to the people around the bar. Looking at her watch, she turned around and called to her friend.

"Hey Jodie, I'm going on my break okay?"

"Yeah, ok then," the shorter dark-haired girl replied back. Alex wiped her hands with a towel and made her way to her office. A few people were throughout the whole club, but it was only 8. Once Alex got into the room she plopped herself down on the couch and took out her phone. After pressing a few keys on her phone and the send button she returned it back into her pocket and waited for her reply. 10 minutes passed and the blonde's eyes were almost completely shut when her phone began to ring.

"You do anything stupid yet?" she asked without greeting the person on the other line, she already knew who it was.

"No, but I am having fun so far," Marissa answered; Alex could hear the radio playing in the background. A smile spread across the blonde's face and she continued to stare up at the ceiling.

"I take it you got my text"

"Yeah, 'Hope you have fun and don't do anything stupid,' your concern for me is so touching, Alex,"

"It's how I show my affection for you,"

"Thanks, I appreciate it," Alex chuckled at Marissa's statement.

"You guys almost there yet?"

"Yeah, we left 15 minutes ago; I still think you should be here with us,"

"I'm sure you still do, you're a stubborn one Marissa"

"So are you,"

"But I can pull it off better,

"Yeah, right, so, who's performing tonight?" the brunette asked, changing the subject.

"The Imaginary Elephants, they're pretty good,"

"That's cool,"

"You don't know who they are huh?"

"Nope,"

"I'll let you listen to them later then,"

"Alright," a knock came from the door and a voice interrupted the conversation.

"Hey Alex, the band's here,"

"'Kay thanks"

"Hey, sorry, but I gotta go, the band just got here," Alex explained over the phone as she got up.

"Oh, okay then, I'll just call you later, you'll be up right?" Alex thought she heard disappointment in Marissa's tone in the beginning, and then it turned into eagerness.

"Yeah, of course, I get out at around midnight,"

"Okay then, I'll talk to you later,"

"Tell everyone I said hi"

"Sure, bye Alex,"

"Bye," the phone line got cut and Alex put her phone back into her pocket. She went out of her office to help the band set up for their gig. They were to perform at 9:30.

About 30 minutes later Alex was done setting up and went back behind the bar counter.

"Trying to keep your mind off of your 'best friend'?" Jodie questioned from across the counter.

"No, I'm trying to do my job that I get paid for doing," Alex explained as she took out a couple of shot glasses to wipe down.

"You sure Alex, cause isn't she with Ryan?" the Latina continued.

"Yes, and Summer and Seth,"

"Well then, whatever happens at prom stays a prom,"

"Shut up Jodie," Alex snapped to her co-worker. Jodie raised up her hands in defense and shrugged. She went back to work and the blonde sucked in a breath before doing the same. A few minutes later she felt her phone vibrate and immediately took it out. It was a text message and Alex opened it. She face instantly turned into a scowl and she shot a glare at Jodie, who smiled cheerfully back at her.

The text on her phone read:

"You probably thought this was Marissa, but it's just me, SUCKER."

Alex mouthed 'BITCH' to her friend, Jodie just smirked in return. Once Alex got closer to the bar, she spoke to her.

"You're a real bitch, you know that?" the blonde hissed.

"What? I'm just having a little fun, lighten up Alex,"

"God, I hate you sometimes,"

"Well, I'm the only one who can actually understand how you feel, so get used to it,"

"Whatever."

"I only speak the truth…" Alex rolled her eyes and shoved past the shorter girl to make last minute checks before the band performed.

Ever since Jodie texted Alex, the blonde got anxious as to if Marissa would text her at all during the night. Every so often she would check her phone for a missed call or text, but nothing came up. Finally her phone vibrated and Alex quickly opened the message.

"Whipped!" the blonde looked up and once again Jodie was smirking like an idiot and she put on a fake innocent look. The blue/green –eyed girl sighed angrily not just because she fell for Jodie's stupid tricks again, but because she knew what Jodie sent her was true.

**-A Couple Hours Later-**

Jodie managed to get Alex a couple more times with the texts, but the blonde retained her anger by working it off. The band finished up and the crowd began to disappear along with them. The Imaginary Elephants had a pretty successful performance. The audience loved their songs. Alex approved too, even though they seemed a little too emo for her taste. Once again the blonde checked her phone for any messages or calls from Marissa, to her dismay, there was nothing.

"Alex," Jodie called out to her friend, "Go to her, I've tortured you enough for the night,"

"Yeah, and what am I supposed to do when I get there? Confess my love to her?"

"No, just go, you're depressing me, you've been pathetic, and even though it was fun messing with you, it's actually kinda sad to see how wound up you are about this chick,"

"Jodie…"

"Will you go already? I'll cover for you, just surprise her, I'm sure she won't mind," After a few seconds of thinking it over, Alex nodded to her.

"Thanks Jodie, but you're still a bitch for screwing with me tonight,"

"That's what I'm here for," Jodie waved to the blonde as she walked away. Alex grabbed her jacket and car keys before exiting the club.

**Umm, yeah I'm stopping here, I want to hear some feedback from you people hahaha. This is only gonna be 2 chapters (two-shot), the next one chapter should be up soon, I'm working on it right now.**

**The title is from a song by Dashboard Confessional, I didn't know what else to title this so I just chose a random song. Hope you enjoyed reading.**

**Review if you like! It's nice the hear from people who actually read this.**

**-The Night Life 13**


	2. The Way You Look Tonight

**Disclaimer:** **Still don't own The O.C., Olivia Wilde, or Mischa Barton. Boo. I'd be a happy camper if I did hah.**

**So, I find it a little ironic how I found out about Olivia Wilde being Number One on Maxim's Hot 100 in 2009. Everyone, including my mom, knew about it before me, and they didn't even bother to tell me. Anyone who's ever known me personally knows about my (over)obsession with OW, so it was a shocker to some of my friends when I told them I didn't know about it until a few days after it was announced. I would rant about it here, but I already got it out of my system at school, in every one of my classes hah. Just wanted to let everybody know that.**

**But, Congratulations Olivia Wilde, yes, you are hot. I'm glad that everyone will get to know that now, since every time I tell someone about her they're always like "Olivia who?"**

**Megan Fox is hot too. DAMN. Haha now to make House officially perfect for me is to have Megan Fox and/or Mischa Barton guest star on the show. Hell yes, who's with me?! ;)**

**Umm, so I think that's enough of that, now onto the awaited part two of the story. Enjoy yourselves. Just a warning, some cheesiness injected here :)**

**Another note before you read: Go look up "The Way You Look Tonight" by KRIS ALLEN and listen to it when indicated… it'll add to the mood!**

**For You to Notice**

About a million things were racing through Alex's mind while she was driving. She put on her slow songs playlist from her iPod on her speakers of her car to try and calm herself down.

"What the hell am I supposed to do when I get there?"

"Why am I doing this anyway?"

"I'm freaking crazy to do this"

"What's Marissa going to think?"

"I'm not even dressed properly to be at freaking Prom,"

The stressed out blonde let out an angry sigh and turned up the volume to tune out her over working conscience.

10 minutes later, after a lot of thinking, sighing, and multiple feelings erupting from her heart and mind, Alex arrived in front of the school where Prom was being held at. She shut off her engine but kept the music playing.

"Ok Kelly, just breathe, it's only a surprise visit for your best friend…. Your best friend who you think that you've fallen hard for ever since the first time you saw her…" Alex said to herself, hitting her forehead with her palm in annoyance.

"God, why is this so hard? It's only Marissa, the girl that I've known for the past three years. The girl who turned into one of my best friends. The girl who I can talk to incessantly for hours on end. The girl who I know can understand me. The girl who can control my emotions without her knowing. The girl who has no freaking idea how much she means to me…" Alex rested her head on the headrest, tired of over analyzing her relationship with Marissa.

"I really need to stop talking to myself when I'm alone…"

She closed her eyes and listened to the song playing. The acoustic guitars and soothing voice of Dashboard Confessional blended together letting Alex feel a little bit more relaxed.

"_But for now I'll look so longingly waiting... For you to want me, for you TO need me, for you to notice me_…"

She opened her blue/green eyes and saw someone coming closer to her car. She couldn't tell who it was from the distance, but after a few moments she began to panic. Marissa had caught sight of Alex's jeep and was walking towards it.

"Damnit, when did she come out?" the blonde thought to herself. She rolled down her windows to let the night air flow inside her car and she unlocked the doors to get out. In a few seconds Alex was outside of her car, in a white band t-shirt and nicely fitted blue jeans. There was no need for her jacket since it wasn't even that cold out. She made her way to the front of her jeep and leaned against her hood. As Marissa got closer, Alex could make out what she was wearing. Her dress was a simple white strapless one that flowed until her ankles. Black heels accompanied it as well as a white corsage on her right arm. Her curled hair was up nicely, with a few strands down to frame her face. A smile was placed charmingly on her face, making Alex's heart melt. The blonde swallowed hard as she felt the tension of her feelings come back up. She managed to put on a nervous smile when Marissa finally got to her. Without saying anything, the taller girl embraced Alex, which didn't really help with her internal dilemma.

"What are you doing here?" Marissa asked once they let go of each other.

"Oh you know, just in the neighborhood," Alex told her, again shoving her hands inside her pockets.

"Really now? I thought you had work,"

"Yeah… But Jodie kicked me out,"

"Why?"

"'Said I was depressing her or something," Alex said truthfully, Marissa just looked at her skeptically.

"Anyway, you look beautiful by the way… did any guy hit on you tonight?" the blonde questioned, changing the subject.

"Thanks, you don't look bad yourself," Alex scoffed at Marissa's reply, "And yes, a few guys did hit on me, but luckily Ryan was with me to tell them off," Alex's eyes flashed with jealousy, but for only a second because she thought it over. Ryan actually protected her from the other creeps trying to get with Marissa.

"No one felt you up without him noticing? No ambushes? No inappropriate touching? Cause you know, I'll kick someone's ass if anything happened to you," Marissa laughed lightly at Alex's rant.

"No, no, no rape, they know better than to mess with Ryan,"

"Well, I guess that's a relief," Alex said as she shrugged.

"But I am glad that you're protective of me, it's comforting to know that someone cares." The brunette took a hold of the other girls arm, and squeezed it lightly. Alex smiled and nodded casually.

"Yeah, that's what I'm here for," Marissa's expression brightened up as she looked into Alex's eyes.

"I wouldn't want it any other way," Just then the soft jazz introduction of "The Way You Look Tonight" began playing and it reached the ears of the two girls.

"Alex Kelly has some soft sentimental music on? Wow, that's something I've never expected" the brunette said surprised. It was Alex's turn to give a laugh.

"You should know that I do have a soft side, other than my thoroughly sophisticated, outspoken, charismatic one"

"I do know, but it's just that most people don't"

"Well, that's something you shouldn't take for granted Cooper," Alex stated.

"I promise, I won't" The vocals of Kris Allen cut into the soft melody.

"Would you care to dance with me? Or have you done enough dancing for one night?" the blonde offered her hand to her best friend.

"Of course I'll dance with you, even if I did, I'd still want to have the last dance with you," Marissa answered taking Alex's hand in her own. The taller girl placed her arms around the neck of her dance partner, while Alex wrapped hers around Marissa's midsection. And it began; the two were dancing together in the middle of the parking lot surrounded by empty cars. The taller girl looked at Alex and the blonde continued smiling in return. In her head she was amused by the fact that here she was, dancing with her best friend that she has been in love with, in the middle of a car filled parking lot. She was dressed casually, while her partner looked like she could be a celebrity walking down the red carpet. They lyrics of "The Way You Look Tonight" were also an added bonus to the mood.

"Well, isn't this just romantic?" Alex said sarcastically, earning a grin from Marissa's face.

"Oh, very much so…" the brunette replied back in the same tone as she then rested her head on the blonde's shoulder. Alex gulped silently in nervousness as she felt Marissa's hands move from her neck to her waist. They stayed like that swaying to the beat of the music, but after a few moments a more upbeat, swing style took over. Marissa moved from her position so that she was again facing Alex. The blonde intertwined her left hand with Marissa's right, while their other hands were placed on the opposite's hips. Alex couldn't help but smile at the silliness of all this. This stance was better suited for the two and it fit well with the tempo of the song. They moved together and managed to keep their balance on the uneven floor. The blonde kept smiling like an idiot, while her partner also mirrored her expression. After the trumpet solo finished, Alex decided to do something incredibly cliché…

She began to sing along, earning a crooked smile and a small laugh from Marissa.

"And that laugh, that wrinkles your nose, touches my foolish heart,

Lovely, don't you ever change, keep that breathless charm,

Won't you please arrange it?

Cause I love you,

And the way you look tonight…

Just the way you look tonight…"

For Alex, the lyrics held meaning; it was definitely true on her part. She sang every note from her heart, wishing Marissa would get the real idea. Once the song ended, Alex bit her lip timidly. Marissa's expression was glowing with happiness.

"Alex that was amazing! I didn't know you could sing!"

"Oh, you know, I get lots of compliments from my shower head and car when I do perform for them," the blonde joked as she relaxed a little.

"Who else have you sang for?"

"Only special people, which only pertains to you…" the two looked at each other for a second before Marissa suddenly pulled Alex into another tight hug. No words were needed. Alex sighed, happy for this moment she was sharing with the brunette. They let go after a few seconds but they kept a closer distance to each other than before. Another song began to play in the background, but it never fully reached their ears. Silence engulfed the two; they only looked at each other. A million things are said in just a single gaze. The atmosphere around them was charged. Alex could feel her heart pounding with anxiety. She was about to say something when, without any warning, Alex felt a pair of soft lips on hers. She was rigid with shock; her brain couldn't compute what was going on. But after a few seconds Alex let her heart take over. She pulled Marissa closer to her, if that was even possible, and deepened it. It seemed like forever, but they both had to stop for air. Both Marissa and Alex were panting softly.

"Alex—" the brunette began after their breathing became normal again.

"Marissa, I think I'm in love with you…" Alex cut in, "I have no idea how or why, but I just am. I know that I'm your best friend, but I want to be more than that to you. Everything you do, I find amazing. I want to be with you. I have no logical reason or sarcastic remark to explain what I feel for you. I don't know how you managed to capture my heart with me knowing it until recently. Marissa Cooper, I Love You." Alex sighed heavily. There, she said it. She proclaimed her deepest secret to the girl she was in love with. A few moments of silence again passed before it was broken by the taller girl.

"Alex, before your nervous rambling about your feelings for me, I was about to say that I love you too," Marissa stated confidently.

"You –uh… what?" Alex said back dumbly. Marissa grinned before talking again.

"I. Love. You. Too. Alex Kelly." The brunette replied back clearly emphasizing her every word.

"You do?" the blonde asked, still surprised at her answer.

"Why would I kiss you if I didn't have feelings for you?" Marissa asked back as she raised up an eyebrow.

"Oh… right…" Alex said as she rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment.

"So… what happens now?" the girl in the dress inquired to her.

"We're together now."

"Well, I know that. I meant, how are we going to explain this to everyone? It won't seem normal to them you know…" Marissa said as she bit her lip.

"Parthenogenesis." Alex replied back curtly.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"There are some types of lizards where there are absolutely no males. It only consists of only females. So how do they reproduce? By means of Parthenogenesis. When the species mates, one of the females act as the male when another is about to lay eggs. They're allowed to do this because of their hormonal cycles. Thus they can reproduce."

"What does this possibly have to do with our relationship?" Marissa asked skeptically.

"Simple really," Alex said smiling, "This just proves that our type of relationship occurs in nature. It's not 'not normal' but rather, it happens normally,"

"So you're comparing what we have to lesbian lizards?" Marissa questioned, her tone still the same.

"Hey, I'm trying to give you a logically good explanation to back us up," Alex stated scientifically.

"Sure…"

"I'm just saying that if lizards can do it, why can't we?"

"God, you are such a nerd. Why did I have to fall for a geek?" the brunette said sarcastically.

"A hot geek that can help you in school since apparently you're always sleeping in class," the blonde shot back coolly.

"That's not true,"

"Yeah it is, we learned about Parthenogenesis in AP Bio. I thought you were going catch me on that one, but I guess not!" Alex said while she was smirking defiantly. Marissa pouted and stuck out her tongue playfully.

"Nerd!"

"You better watch where you stick that tongue out, you might not get it back…" the blonde said, implying hidden meanings behind it.

"Oh yeah? How?" Marissa challenged as she stuck out her tongue again.

"Like this…" Alex grasped quickly Marissa and kissed her. Instantly their kiss heated up. Marissa wrapped her arms around Alex's waist and Alex did the same. After a few minutes it ended and Marissa laid her forehead on Alex's.

"See?" the blonde said smugly.

"Mmmm, I guess so, I'll try to be more careful next time," Marissa replied back thoughtfully, as she smiled widely.

"I'm sure you will…" Alex returned the smile and she kissed Marissa again. As the two continued on their... business, the ending of a song played from Alex's jeep speakers.

"And here we go there's nothing left to choose,  
And here we go there's nothing left to lose"

**I had so much trouble ending this. Sorry if it sucks, but I'm done haha. Here you have it! Hope you enjoyed this. Thank you to my reviewers :) it definitely kept me motivated to finish this.**

**One reason why this is kinda late: My best friend got the MAXIM magazine with the Hot 100 in it (including Olivia Wilde as number one)… and yeah. I don't have to say anything else :P**

**Songs used:**

"**For You to Notice" –Dashboard Confessional**

"**The Way You Look Tonight" –Kris Allen**

"**Nothing Left to Lose" –Mat Kearny**

**Kris Allen's cover of "The Way You Look Tonight" is amazing. I love it. I hope you did too (if you played it during the story).**

**Review if you'd like… and thanks for reading!**

**Ok then, until I write another story!**

**-The Night Life 13**


End file.
